Homeland Security: Frontier Army 1848-1860
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During the 1850s, the U.S. Army suffered an annual attrition rate of 28 percent due to desertion, discharge, and death from combat, accident, or disease. Western garrisons were woefully shorthanded. During its brief tenure as a military post, Fort Phantom Hill was rated for 5 companies of soldiers, which, when fully authorized, should have mustered 262 enlisted men. However, the average troop strength, when five companies were present, was only 218 men (83% strength).

Activities and Operations - For most soldiers on the Texas frontier, military service was characterized by long periods of boredom punctuated by brief periods of excitement. Military posts were rarely, if ever subject to Indian attacks, as the Comanche realized the strength present in any large body of men. Consequently, attacks were conducted against isolated settlements and small patrols that were not able to bring superior to bear against their attackers. Between 1849 and 1861, there were 84 Army-Indian actions in Texas, the vast majority of which were hasty attacks conducted with little or no coordination among either the soldiers or Indians involved.

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